Interest is not proof.
Many people are interested in oil and gas because the industry looks powerful from the outside. But interest alone does not make a buyer reply, an employer call back, or a supplier trust you with an opportunity.
You need proof that you are learning in a serious direction.
That is where a 90-day plan helps.
Days 1 to 30: Learn the map
Spend the first month understanding the market.
Write simple notes on upstream, midstream, downstream, and support services. List buyer types: operators, EPCs, contractors, service companies, depots, mines, power plants, public entities, and private industrial sites.
Choose one country or region and build a basic market map. In Ghana, you might start with Petroleum Commission resources, the Ghana Petroleum Register, GHANEPS, the Public Procurement Authority, and downstream regulator information from the NPA.
Your output for the first 30 days is not money. It is clarity.
Days 31 to 60: Pick two service lanes
Choose two lanes from the Cookbook's beginner-friendly list: calibration, spares, inspection and NDT, HSE support, maintenance support, logistics, equipment rental, or manpower support.
For each lane, create a one-page note:
- What problem does this service solve?
- Who buys it?
- What documents are commonly needed?
- What standards or certificates may appear?
- Which suppliers look credible?
- What questions should you ask before quoting?
This is where your confidence starts to become specific.
Days 61 to 90: Build conversations and proof
Now start speaking to people, but do it respectfully.
Talk to suppliers. Ask what makes a buyer serious. Talk to technicians. Ask what salespeople often misunderstand. Study tender notices. Build a sample quotation checklist. Create a clean company or personal capability profile if appropriate.
Your 90-day proof pack could include:
- A market map.
- Two service lane briefs.
- A buyer list.
- A supplier qualification checklist.
- A sample RFQ intake form.
- A small glossary of technical terms.
- Notes from real conversations.
This is what separates you from someone who only says, "I am passionate."
Why the Cookbook is structured this way
The book is not meant to entertain you for a weekend and leave you excited but unchanged. It is built to help you produce evidence: notes, lists, scripts, checklists, buyer maps, supplier files, and next actions.
The industry respects useful people. Use 90 days to become visibly useful.